Marine Charged with Exposing Himself to Children on School Buses

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Military.comBy Hope Hodge Seck

An active-duty Marine staff sergeant is under investigation after allegedly exposing himself to students aboard school buses.

Justin Michael Abbott, 28, of Holly Ridge, North Carolina, was arrested Dec. 4 by detectives from the Onslow County Sheriff's Office and charged with three counts of felony indecent exposure and four counts of misdemeanor indecent exposure, according to a report from the Jacksonville Daily News.

Abbott is a ten-year Marine and a staff sergeant attached to 2nd Intelligence Battalion at Camp Lejeune, according to officials with II Marine Expeditionary Force. He deployed twice to Iraq and once to Africa with a Marine crisis response force.

While Abbott was arrested based on his alleged activities that occurred off-base, he is also being investigated for similar alleged offenses at Lejeune.

A spokeswoman for the force, 1st Lt. Danielle Phillips, said Abbott was detained by military authorities after he was released on bond from the sheriff's office.

The Onslow County Sheriff's Office and Naval Criminal Investigative Service are still investigating Abbott's alleged crimes, Phillips said.

"The Marine Corps takes all allegations of misconduct seriously and is fully cooperating with the local law enforcement and civilian authorities," she said.